News
Local

Kingstonians to run 'Secret Marathon'

This International Women’s Day, Kingston will participate in the first Secret Marathon 3K in Canada.

Inspired by women in Afghanistan, the Secret Marathon 3K, to be held in Kingston on March 7, intends to give Canadians a space where they feel safe to run or walk at night in their communities.

“Many women, both here in Canada and in Afghanistan, don’t feel safe to run at night or alone, and we want to change that by bringing our community together to celebrate everyone’s right to be free to run or walk,” Margaret Stewart, the race director for Kingston’s Secret Marathon 3K, said.

Kingston joins Ottawa, Peterborough and seven other Canadian cities participating in the event, which is inspired by The Secret Marathon documentary.

“We are so excited to be able to bring Kingston on as one of our 10 cities,” Kate McKenzie, the co-director and executive producer of The Secret Marathon, said.

The documentary captures the second annual Marathon of Afghanistan, which is the first official marathon in the country held in the Bamian province.

McKenzie joined a team in creating the film and participated in the 42.2-kilometre run herself.

“For me, it was an incredible experience, because I got to meet so many amazing women and men that were coming together around this idea of being equal, and trying to find a way that they could encourage safety in their community,” McKenzie said.

The location of the Marathon of Afghanistan was kept secret to eliminate risk of an attack on the event, and she said some women had to train secretly.

“They would face issues of people insulting them, or throwing rocks at them, or even receiving threats from extremists when they are trying to go for a run, so when you think about it that way, it just makes you realize how privileged we are in Canada,” McKenzie said.

After filming, McKenzie was able to tell people about the film in Canada. When she told the story, she said, people began to express how they also do not feel safe running in their communities, especially at night.

“I thought, that is crazy. If people in Afghanistan could use a race to be able to help them create a safe place, why couldn’t we do that in Canada? Why couldn’t we build on what we had learned in Afghanistan and bring it here?” McKenzie said.

“We certainly do not face the challenges women in Afghanistan face, but by walking to support the Secret Marathon, we are raising awareness of the issues. And in doing so, we hope that creating a safe environment for all who wish to walk or run is the future for all of us,” Stewart said.

The Secret Marathon 3K is meant to inspire Canadians and people around the world to achieve equality through community, McKenzie said. To honour the spirit of their experience in Afghanistan, the route for the Secret Marathon 3K will be kept secret until the day of the event.

The Secret Marathon 3K is partnered with the Running Room and Canadian Women for Women in Afghanistan.

Money raised from the event will go towards finishing the documentary, which is anticipated to be released this fall. McKenzie said some of the proceeds will also go towards supporting the Canadian Women for Women in Afghanistan.

Stewart is the treasurer of Kingston’s Chapter of the Canadian Women for Women in Afghanistan, which she co-founded in 2003.

“We started our local chapter to raise funds to hire teachers so girls educations could occur [in Afghanistan]. We have been fundraising ever since, and when we learned of the opportunity to be a part of the Secret Marathon 3K event, we signed on immediately,” Stewart said.

The Secret Marathon 3K team, McKenzie said, has set a goal of 500 participants across Canada, and 270 have signed up so far. It costs $15 to register.

“I hope we are able to register 50 individuals here in Kingston,” Stewart said.

Kingston’s Secret Marathon will be hosted by the Running Room at 255 Princess St. on March 7 at 6:30 p.m.